CAREER: Understanding and Controlling the Surface Properties of a Micromoldable Liquid Metal

该学院早期职业发展奖的研究目标是确定可微模塑液态金属的基本表面特性。液态金属是一种低毒的、以镓为基础的液体，在室温下具有低粘度(如水)。它在其表面形成一层薄薄的固体氧化皮，使液体能够被微塑成所需的形状(例如，导线、天线)，这可能对柔性电子产品有用。微模塑金属由皮肤机械稳定，这决定了金属表面的电、机械和化学性质。这项研究将探索这种表面的基本性质，并确定操纵、修改和调整它的方法，以形成具有表面决定性质的功能电子学。在这个项目中，将开发和使用新的表面敏感技术来彻底表征液态金属上氧化物皮肤的独特性质。如果研究成功，将能够制造出具有可调性能的柔软、灵活和可拉伸的电子元件。应用实例包括用于分子电子学的软电极、可变形天线和用于微流控设备的电子元件。通过这项研究制造的设备将提供耐用性和灵活性的优势，并且制造起来很容易。这项研究将被整合到北卡罗来纳州立大学的一门新课程中，工程专业的研究生和本科生将直接受益于参与研究。在流行电影的背景下讨论研究的互动模块将每年提交给北卡罗来纳州立大学的一个既定项目，该项目旨在让11至14岁的非裔美国人和西班牙裔男孩对高等教育和科学职业感兴趣。

The research objective of this Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) award is to identify the fundamental surface properties of a micromoldable liquid metal. The liquid metal is a low toxicity, gallium-based fluid with a low viscosity (like water) at room temperature. It forms a thin, solid 'skin' of oxide on its surface that allows the liquid to be micromolded into desirable shapes (e.g., wires, antennas) that may be useful for flexible electronics. The micromolded metal is stabilized mechanically by the skin, which dictates the electrical, mechanical, and chemical properties of the surface of the metal. The research will explore the fundamental properties of this surface and identify means of manipulating, modifying, and tuning it to form functional electronics with surface-dictated properties. For this project, new surface sensitive techniques will be developed and used to thoroughly characterize the unique properties of the skin of oxide on the liquid metal.If successful, the research will enable the fabrication of soft, flexible, and stretchable electronic components with tunable properties. Example applications include soft electrodes for molecular electronics, deformable antennas, and electrical components for microfluidic devices. Devices made possible by the research will offer the advantages of durability and flexibility, and will be simple to fabricate. The research will be integrated into a new course at NC State and graduate and undergraduate engineering students will benefit directly from involvement in the research. An interactive module that discusses the research within the context of popular movies will be presented annually to an established program at NC State that aims to interest 11- to 14-year-old African-American and Hispanic boys in higher education and careers in science.